Director convicted in Singapore for lying about workers on grant application

Robofusion Asia, a company that supplies robotic ice-cream kiosks, has been convicted of giving false information in the Productivity and Innovation Credit (PIC) cash payout application form. Company director, Yong Tai Kok has been convicted of his role in helping the company to make the false PIC claim.

The company had named two men, Mark Lim Xian Yu and Tay Hui Jie, as employees even though they were not working for the company. Investigations showed that Yong had used the names in a PIC application form dated 23 May 2013.

In order to qualify for the grant, the firm needed to meet the requirement of having three local employees, which it did not. Additionally, Robofusion made contributions to their Central Provident Fund (CPF) accounts to present them as its employees when in fact they were not.

The company had claimed government funding for the purchase of a S$93,000 Robofusion Generation 4 Ice Cream Kiosk on 28 February 2013, and for a cashless payment system costing nearly $15,000 in April 2013.

Tania Chin and Jeremy Pereira, the counsel for Robofusion and Yong, said in mitigation that the two employees concerned were already working for Yong in his related company, 3D Matters. It was added that he had planned to eventually hire them to work in Robofusion as well.

Yong has made full restitution. Chin said that the money Yong had obtained was injected back into the company. The court also ordered Robofusion to pay a penalty of S$60,000 for the PIC cash payout that it was not entitled to.

Yong was convicted of intentionally aiding Robofusion to, without reasonable excuse, give false information to the Comptroller of Income Tax to obtain a PIC cash payout which the company was not entitled to.

The court ordered Yong to pay a penalty of $120,000, which is twice the amount of PIC cash payout that was wrongfully claimed and a fine of $4,000.

Sentenced to 16 months’ jail yesterday, Wang had used a penknife to slash the victim on his neck and arm in a work-related dispute.

Investigations showed that the victim was told by his supervisor on 20 October 2016 that the two men had to report for work an hour earlier the next day, making reporting time to be 7.30am.

The victim then told Wang that evening, although he was unsure if Wang heard him. At about 7.45am the next day, the report stated that Wang argued with the victim, claiming he was not told of the new timing.

When the argument escalated, Wang took the penknife from his trouser pocket and swung it at the victim a few times – slashing him in the left side of his neck and his right arm.

It was reported that co-workers separated them, but the victim had suffered serious cuts to nerves in his neck and left external jugular vein by then. He also had a cut on his right forearm.

A broken, rusted piece of the penknife blade was found embedded in his neck. He was warded at Changi General Hospital for four days and given hospitalisation leave for a month.

Wang could have been jailed for up to seven years, fined, caned or received any combined punishment for causing hurt with a weapon of offence. His sentence was backdated to 22 Oct 2016.